When a group of teens walked in to lobby a Washington state lawmaker for the abortion business Planned Parenthood, they received feedback that they didn’t expect.
Washington state Rep. Mary Dye tried to impress upon the teens the value of abstinence and sexual responsibility, according to the Seattle Times. The teens were visiting state lawmakers Monday as part of the abortion group’s annual Teen Lobbying Day to push for a bill to expand insurance coverage for birth control, according to the report.
Dye, a Republican from Pomeroy, Washington, listened to a group of students present their case for the bill, and told them that she did not support their agenda. Then, she asked the students about abstinence, virginity and responsible sexual choices as young adults, the report states.
“Following the conversation they initiated on birth control for teenagers, I talked about the empowerment of women and making good choices – opinions shaped by my mother and being a mother of three daughters,” Dye said in a statement after the meeting.
SIGN THE PETITION! Congress Must De-Fund Planned Parenthood Immediately
Unsurprising, Planned Parenthood officials were outraged. They said the state Congresswoman also asked students if they were virgins and suggested that one was not, according to the report.
“I’ve never been in any type of meeting, especially with teens, where an adult, especially an adult legislator, was so incredibly disrespectful and inappropriate,” said Rachel Todd, a Planned Parenthood worker who accompanied the teens.
“After she made the statement about virginity, all of my teens looked at me,” said Todd, an education specialist for Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho. “And I said, ‘You don’t have to answer that. You don’t have to answer that.’”
Dye apologized for asking about the students’ virginity but maintained that she does not support Planned Parenthood’s agenda.
Dye said: “In hindsight, a few of the thoughts I shared, while well-intended, may have come across as more motherly than what they would expect from their state representative. If anything I said offended them or made them feel uncomfortable, I apologize.”
Like Dye, many parents express concern about Planned Parenthood’s influence on young students. The group, which aborts more babies than any other group in the U.S., openly opposes abstinence education programs. Instead, the group lobbies to teach its own sex education programs in schools.
In 2014, LifeNews reported that Hawaii state Rep. Bob McDermott tried to get copies of Planned Parenthood’s sex education curriculum after hearing complaints from parents about what was being taught in Hawaii public schools. The state department of education denied his request, saying “the curriculum is sensitive in nature and can be misinterpreted.”
Some pro-lifers oppose the abortion group’s sex ed program because they say Planned Parenthood uses it to gain students’ trust and sell more abortions. Others oppose it because they say Planned Parenthood promotes risky sexual behavior to vulnerable young teens.
In 2014, Live Action release a video of Planned Parenthood employees telling girls that “stop,” really doesn’t always mean, “stop” and encouraging young teen females to participate in sado-masochistic sexual activities, including gagging, whipping, asphyxiation, shopping at sex stores and viewing pornography.
LifeNews also recently reported that Planned Parenthood’s booklet for HIV-positive youth, “Healthy, Happy and Hot,” tells young people that it is their “human right” to not tell their partner that they have HIV.
